FASHION TRENDS

Do you remember the ‘Frankie Says Relax’ t-shirt craze in the 80’s? That was a trend that lasted one Summer and soon disappeared into insignificance. Then Wham turned up with George Michael wearing a ‘Choose Life’ t-shirt and the kids went crazy again! A 13-year-old me was resplendent in my varied collection of Thunderbirds/Desperate Dan/Scooby Do t-shirts whilst holidaying in Majorca in 1983. The ‘cartoon character’ t-shirt trend reigned for a few sunny months that year also. Then faded quicker than the tacky printed designs that adorned the front of the t-shirts.

Don’t worry this post isn’t about how Gabba have sacked the Automation and Chat Marketing business off and are branching out into the fashion industry. No chance! We’re here for the long haul. Chatbots aren’t a trend that’s only going to last one summer like the ‘Relax’ t-shirts. This trend is only going one way, up and what drives it is phones and chat.

I have a teenage son who lives on his phone chatting to his mates. He chats via Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and SMS. That’s where he hangs out with his mates, exchanging meme’s and having a laugh. He might be sat on his bum on the couch at 9pm at night watching the football but his phone is in his hand, at the ready, fingers poised to fire off a quick comment to his mates on the latest controversy happening on the pitch. I communicate with him through WhatsApp, even when we’re in the house together!

I’ve also got my phone in my hand whilst the match is on by the way. Fingers poised to fire off a quick comment on the latest controversy happening on the pitch in my ‘Football Dads’ WhatsApp group. My one and only statistic I’m going to throw at you is this little nugget. In the next year the primary channel of communication for everybody will be through chat if you’re under 35 it already is. Yesss, I’m 52 but still down with the kids, it would seem.

After the match, I’m still on my phone browsing for expensive trainers and then even more expensive bikes. Or I might be comparing car insurance or googling ‘best divorce lawyer in Manchester’ (joking!). That’s me time, on the couch at night, browsing, chatting, and shopping. Wanting instant 24/7 answers and giving one finger responses with a quick tap and swipe on the call-to-action buttons.?I want it easy, and I want it quickly. If I must leave my phone and turn on my laptop to complete a purchase because of a rubbish optimized website, then they have lost the sale. Give me my product signed, sealed and on its way out for delivery within seconds through a chatbot and I’m happy.

I lied about giving you only one statistic. So, I’m going to finish with this one. 47% of organizations are expected to implement chatbots for customer support services within the next year. If you are part of the 53% who aren’t, I would seriously suggest sorting out an automated chat strategy for your customer journey. What did them Frankie t- shirts say back in the 80’s? Relax? Well, if you’re a company that sits back and relaxes; your competitors are already out of the blocks and are streets ahead.?

‘Make sure you jump onto the chatbot trend quickly and consult with us at www.wearegabba.com about the best chat strategy for your business and experience what the hype is all about’

A bit long for a t-shirt that, think I’ll just go with something a bit snappier like….

?‘gabba create conversation’.??